September 26, 2017

A great cartoon makes us chuckle even as it points out an uncomfortable truth – as does this one, by Ian Lockwood, an expert in sustainable transportation by day and a cartoonist by night.

Transportation is a huge part of most people’s footprint. When it comes to driving our kids to school, another uncomfortable truth is that the favour we’re trying to do for them pales in comparison to the environmental damage we’re inflicting upon their generation. Plus distracted parents can be downright hazardous as they hurry in and out of the school parking lot.

So what to do?

If there’s a school bus, let the kids take it

Do a rational assessment of risks, and let kids walk or bike whenever possible; outfit them with the clothes they need for inclement weather

Consider organizing a ‘walking school bus’ in your neighbourhood, where a group of students accompanied by one adult (or an older student living near the origin of the route) walk to school and are joined by more and more students as they near the school; it could be as simple as making one phone call

Consider public transportation where it is available; safe, with well-trained operators

If driving is unavoidable, carpool: every shared ride is one less car on the road or congesting the schoolyard

In all cases, help your kids develop solid safety habits – habits that will serve them well far beyond school years.

September 12, 2017

Ever wonder how much land it takes to support your lifestyle?

I often share with audiences the story of when I first completed an online Global Footprint questionnaire a decade ago. I was shocked when it told me that if everyone lived like me, we’d need four planets. Four planets. It was a ‘light bulb moment’ that launched me on a journey to consume less – a journey that continues to this day.

August 12, 2017

The most important ways to reduce your carbon footprint

There is much fruit on the proverbial ‘tree of sustainability solutions’. Some of it is large fruit, some of it is small. Some of it is high in the tree and hard to reach, some of it is low-hanging and easily picked.

Make no mistake: EVERY act of sustainability is a good act. But if our goal is to make the greatest difference, it’s the large fruit we want.

Unfortunately, it’s usually not low hanging. A study published last month concluded that the four biggest ways we can reduce our carbon footprint are:

Eating a plant-based diet

Avoiding air travel

Living car free

Having smaller families

Uncomfortable? Me too. Those are tough.

But perhaps much solace can be taken from the fact that each of these can be chipped away at slowly. (Even the fourth? Yes, because large families committed to sustainability can have smaller carbon footprints than small families without such commitment; and perhaps the former can teach the latter.)

Again, to be clear: every act of sustainability is a good act. But if our goal is to make the biggest difference, it’s good to know where that big difference can be made.

August 1, 2017

Inspiring words from Ray Anderson

You’ve probably never heard of Ray Anderson – but the world would be a far different place if all corporate leaders thought, and then acted, as he did.

Ray Anderson was the CEO of Interface, the world’s largest commercial carpet manufacturer. In the summer of 1994, he had an “an epiphanal experience, a total change of mindset” about sustainability. That began a process that has made Interface the world’s most sustainable carpet company in the world, with a plan to be net-zero in everything by 2020.

But instead of me writing about it, why not hear it straight from Ray, in this powerful video? It’s well worth the four minutes.

July 17, 2017

Toothpaste, soap and a moisturizer/fragrance

A few years ago, our family went on a four week backpacking vacation. If you’ve ever backpacked, you know ounces count – so one of our weight-saving strategies was to limit our toiletries to one tube of toothpaste, a small bar of soap, a bit of moisturizing cream and some sunblock. Light and simple, they suited our needs perfectly.

Akamai, a new personal care company, suggests that most of us could live on just three personal care products: toothpaste, soap (for skin and hair) and an oil spray for fragrance and moisture. So that’s all it offers.

Akamai’s motivation isn’t weight in your backpack; it’s sustainability and simplicity. In the words of the co-founder, “Typical personal care product companies want you to consume more of their products, so they say wash your hair and body every day. We have been led into this false sense of what is required to have healthy skin, teeth and hair.”

July 4, 2017

Handwashing with cool water is just as good for killing bacteria

For years we’ve been taught that, when washing hands, we have to use hot water to effectively remove bacteria. But a new study published in the Journal of Food Protection has found no difference in washing effectiveness when hands were washed in water that was 16, 26 or 38 degrees C. (Note: for reference, 16⁰C is a bit warmer than the water coming out of your cold water tap, but it’s colder than you’d want to swim in.)

The implication: in the words of one of the study’s authors, “We are wasting energy to heat water to a level that is not necessary.”

So – something to think about the next time you wash your hands. Cool water is much more comfortable in summer anyway!

June 6, 2017

Plastic straws? Just say no.

A plastic straw seems pretty small and innocuous.

But consider this: 500 million of them are used in just the US every day. Few are recycled; many end up in the ocean. They’re one of the top 10 pieces of trash collected in beach cleanups around the world, according to the Surfrider Association. And they’re hazardous for marine mammals, as is obvious in this video (warning: graphic) of a straw being pulled from the nostril of a sea turtle.

The Town of Tofino, BC, has launched a campaign, Straws Suck, and most of the town’s restaurants have stopped serving plastic straws. Thelastplasticstraw.org aims to get restaurants to stop serving straws, and NoStrawPlease encourages people to pledge to go without straws, and help spread the word.

In your own small way, you can help too. For most of us, straw usage is more habit than necessity – so, the next time you order a drink, why not just say no when it comes to plastic drinking straws?

June 6, 2017

This pie chart from the US EPA represents the waste profile of a typical municipality.

Do you notice what I notice?

Over a quarter of our waste is organic (food or yard trimmings), which is completely compostable

Another quarter is paper, which is almost entirely recyclable

8% is plastics, much of which is recyclable

1% is metal, which is recyclable

2% is wood, which can be composted or repurposed for fuel

Add up those numbers and you can see that if we recycled, composted or otherwise diverted everything possible, we could keep at least three-quarters of our waste out of the landfill (and that’s not including glass, which is recyclable in many places).

That would greatly reduce the need for fresh resources; and vastly extend the lives of our landfills.

So – what’s in your trash bin right now? If you’re not diverting everything you can, why not make a commitment right now?

Take a minute to imagine the potential if we all recycled and composted everything we could – then do your part to make it happen!